Mitsubishi Motors UK has posted an all-time new vehicle sales record of 36,126 for 2004, up 12% on the previous year. Achieving its fourth consecutive year of growth, Mitsubishi Motors UK has doubled its sales since 2000 from 18,089 to 36,126 units.

This sales success has seen the UK operation become Mitsubishi’s number one distributor in Europe for the first time in its history. Achieving more sales than Germany (35,597 units) and the rapidly expanding Russian market (30,037 units), Mitsubishi’s UK performance has made a significant contribution to the brand’s overall European performance, which recorded a solid 8% increase compared to 2003.

New model introductions during 2004 have played a major part in helping to increase sales. Launched in January Outlander, Mitsubishi’s crossover 4x4, achieved 1,458 sales. Grandis, on sale since July, has already taken 16% of the petrol large MPV market with 689 sales. Mitsubishi’s newest member of the range, the 5-door Colt Supermini, has got off to a good start since its introduction in September posting sales of 2,036 units.

Along with new additions to the range, established models have also delivered exceptional results with Shogun Sport achieving a 126% increase with 4,141 sales and Shogun up 19% with 5,930 sales. Within the extremely competitive large SUV segment, Shogun’s combination of exceptional pricing and proven abilities both on and off road has seen its segment share increase to 10%. Mitsubishi’s L200 pick-up remains the company’s top selling model, with a segment-leading 12,179 sales. The L200 continued to dominate the pick-up sector taking 36% of the total market at year-end, way ahead of its nearest rival from Nissan, which finished with a share of 22%.

Jim Tyrrell, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Motors UK states: "2004 has been another excellent year for the company, but there is more to come. The first full year of 5-door Colt sales and the introduction of its 3-door sister model plus the addition of a superb diesel engine to Grandis will see the brand grow by 20% during 2005 taking sales to around 44,000 units."

With competitive pricing, generous specification and bold styling the Colt range will be the principal area of growth for Mitsubishi Motors UK in 2005, the sporty 3-door model accounting for 6,000 new sales and the practical Colt 5-door adding another 7,000 units.

In showrooms from February, prices for the 3-door Colt range will start at £7,499 for the entry-level 1.1-litre Colt Red, rising to £10,249 for the 1.5 DI-D Equippe and £12,999 for the flagship 147bhp Colt CZT.